The Youth of the Nation
by theMagicBehindtheMask
Summary: A trip to the mall goes terribly wrong, and now Robin's life hangs in the fragile balance. Rated for minor cursing in the future.
1. Exploding Inwards

I don't own any DC characters. But if I did, I would sic them on people I don't like.

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It wasn't supposed to end up like this.

Robin's life wasn't supposed to be in danger like this; all alone, with little hope for immediate help. He wasn't supposed to have to choose between his secrets and his life.

Hell, the team wasn't even supposed to _be _here.

But they were.

And that was the cause of this mess.

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Thanks to Wally's insistent badgering, the five teenagers that constituted Young Justice were in their civvies, walking the streets of Gotham City, New Jersey, home of both the infamous Dynamic Duo...

And one of the best video game arcades in the United States.

Which Wally just had to try.

At first the day had gone well. They had looked around the mall, introduced M'gann to hotdogs, and Robin bought a pair of The Flash- themed boxers for a very unamused Wally. Even Superboy had loosened up, taking up the persona of Connor Kent like a second skin. There hadn't really been any cause for worry.

Then they found the arcade.

It was located smack dab in the middle of the mall, and the sheer size of it had Wally and Robin practically drooling. The two hyperactive boys had darted ahead of the rest of the group, unable to contain their excitement. While M'gann and Connor followed suit, albeit a little less enthusiastically, Aqualad leaned against a wall and watched.

The joy on the gamers' faces was palpable as they tried out the consoles, each one bearing different flashy titles and graphics. Their smiles split their faces in two, and Aqualad found himself smiling with them- their happiness was contagious.

Nobody saw it coming.

The bombs rocked the very foundations of the mall and all of the people in it, forcing them to hold on to something for balance. Chaos ripped through the building, and the masses of people stampeded towards the doors, only to find that the doors were locked. Children were crying for their frantic parents, and teenagers held to one another in the midst of the catastrophe. The screams of the injured echoed in Aqualad's ears and he cringed, fighting his way both through the smoke and out of his outer layer of clothing, trying to find his team.

He ran into Superboy first, who had already switched into his "suit" by ditching his black sweatshirt. Close behind him was M'gann, green-skinned once again, who had also changed her clothing under the cover of the smoke and flames. She said something, but over the frantic screaming of the frightened civilians, he had trouble hearing her soft voice.

"What?"

When she answered him, it was from within the confines of his own mind, "I _said,_ 'Where are Robin and Kid Flash?'!"

Aqualad's brow furrowed and he had been about to reassure her that their teammates would turn up eventually, but was cut off by a bright streak of yellow. Kid Flash suddenly stood before the trio, his light costume easily distinguishable in the chaos. A characteristic bright smile lit up the speedster's face.

"Kid Flash, reporting for duty!"

Aqualad's eyes remained pensive, though he did give a small smile. "Do you know where Robin is?"

Kid Flash's grin faltered, "I have no clue. I thought he was with you guys."

A small spike of fear for the thirteen-year-old crime fighter stabbed itself into Aqualad's gut, and Superboy reacted immediately. "Megan, can you locate him telepathically?"

She face-palmed, as she is prone to doing, "Hello, Megan! Why didn't I think of that?" She quickly set out to do so. As she concentrated, Aqualad turned to Superboy.

"Can you go open the main doors and help the civilians out? I do not think that whoever did this is done yet." Superboy nodded solemnly and left, pushing his way through the crowd. Aqualad was about to turn to Kid Flash but was interrupted by M'gann. She looked confused, and a little bit frightened.

"Aqualad, I can't find Robin anywhere!"

The Atlantian's stomach leaped into his throat, determined to make him choke. "What do you mean?"

She shook her head, unsure and timid, "He's gone! His consciousness just... disappeared."

Kid Flash spoke up, "Wait, his consciousness? So he could be asleep."

Aqualad nodded slowly, catching on to KF's thought process, "Or he could have been knocked out. Where did you see him last?"

Kid Flash started walking towards the back of the room, talking over his shoulder as he went, "I saw him back here just a few minutes before the bomb went off. He was headed... in this...direction..."

The entire back of the store was obliterated. Bodies of little kids and adults alike lay beneath the rubble, the occasional exposed arm poking out.

Robin was nowhere to be found.

M'gann snapped into action first, gingerly moving the fallen sheet rock from the premises. Aqualad and Kid Flash busied themselves by helping the occasional survivor out of the destruction and into a safer area, as well as scanning for Robin. It wasn't until the young martian moved a particularly large piece of wall that a brightly colored sleeve caught his eye.

It was Robin's sweatshirt.

Aqualad immediately began digging the poor kid out of the pile of broken ceiling, cringing at the sight of blood. Getting the unconscious Boy Wonder out of the rubble was a lot harder than it should have been, largely due to the fact that he was curled into a tight ball around something.

Or someone.

Slowly, carefully, Aqualad extracted the little girl out of Robin's arms. She was alive, thanks to the bright boy that had saved her.

Sadly, he hadn't fared half as well.

A laceration at the little bird's temple was exuded a steady stream of blood, and though they had his arms and legs free of the heavy obstacles, Kid Flash and M'gann were having problems pulling him entirely out. Aqualad led the little girl to her frantic parents before stepping over to help his team extract the injured hero. His hands gripped Robin on either side of his torso behind his head while Kid Flash grabbed his legs. On the count of three they lifted, but Robin's agonized scream made them freeze where they crouched. M'gann was immediately at Robin's side, her hands gently running over him to see what caused him so much pain.

Aqualad's webbed fingers slipped the tiniest margin and he adjusted himself to the side, trying not to jostle the boy in his arms. His left hand slid completely underneath Robin's lower back before slipping on something warm and wet.

And without looking, he knew that it was red, too. He froze.

"M'gann!" he called. The martian girl looked up immediately, her frightened face betraying her calm actions. "Look at his back. I feel blood."

She nodded and bent to look at his injury. From the angle he was at, Aqualad could see the emotions run across her face in quick succession; curiosity, shock, and a confusion that quickly bled into horror. She pulled herself back up, her eyes wide. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, reminding him of a gaping fish, but no sound came out.

"M'gann, what happened?"

She swallowed heavily and looked down, her eyebrows drawing together. Kid Flash looked at her with alarm, but didn't move, something that Aqualad was infinitely grateful for when M'gann finally spoke.

"Th-there's a pole... it's stabbing into his back."

Aqualad didn't waste any time with questions, instead reaching forward to unzip Robin's jacket. Kid Flash quickly grasped what he was trying to do and grabbed the zipper when Aqualad could no longer reach. After his torso was clear of the jacket, Aqualad made quick work of his shirt, ripping it in two, straight down the middle. What he saw almost made him vomit.

The pole had completely impaled Robin, and was sticking out of his stomach a good half inch, covered in the teen's crimson blood.

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This is probably going to be my only Young Justice fanfiction, but I figured, "Hey, since I have this in my head, I might as well do it." I personally prefer Teen Titans, but there are new Young Justices every week and well, Teen Titans... not so much.

Well, I will hopefully post again in the next couple of days, seeing as I have nothing else to do.

Thanks for reading!

-Magic


	2. Fight Inside

Darkness. It surrounded him, sucking the breath from his lungs and beating his mind into a corner. It was oppressive, like the bottom of the ocean, and he vaguely wondered if that was where he was- the ocean. He vaguely considered calling out for Kaldur to pull him up before beating the thought down. _It won't do any good._

But why?

What had happened? Something _had_ happened, he knew. Something important. The more he thought about it though, the further away it got, sending him into a blissful state of unawareness. So he fought harder.

He clawed his was out of the pressing darkness, trying his hardest only to find himself in the dark void of his thoughts. Determined not to give up, he focused on his senses, trying to at least see if he was in any eminent danger.

_Hearing first. _

He focused on his ears, mildly concerned that all he could hear was buzzing.

Were there bees under the ocean? Surely there weren't.

Unbidden, a memory wrapped itself around his brain.

_He and Batman had been chasing the Joker. They found him in the back of an old warehouse and fought, only to see him escape by blowing up some of the crates near Robin's head. Afterward Richard's ears had rung terribly, and he wasn't able to hear much of anything for a half hour. He had inquired to his adoptive father about the cause._

"_Dick," he'd said, "The ringing you hear is excess noise. It's your ears' way of telling you that you've heard too much, or that whatever you were listening to was too loud for your ears to handle. Specifically? The bomb that the Joker used is probably what caused it."_

The ringing in his ears now was suspiciously close to the ringing in his memory. _Something... blew up?_ His tired mind struggled to wrap itself around the concept. Exhausted from the effort it took to understand, he turned back to his senses.

_Alright, how about we try taste?_

His taste buds were surprisingly simple to pull back into his awareness, and the first thing he noticed was the sharp tang of blood. The coppery liquid worried him, but he continued on with his mental exploration, pushing tendrils of panic away from his thoughts.

_Now feel._

At first his entire body felt numb, and he almost didn't _want _to feel what was going on around him for fear of pain, but he chided himself and moved forward. Feeling came back at the ends of his fingertips first, slowly spreading through his tired limbs. With a start he realized that they were being moved and he tried to struggle, only to fall limp. Something warm was being taken from him and he fought against the paralysis of his arms as hard as he could, and he struggled to use his voice, but nothing happened.

_No! Don't take her from me! That little girl-!_

That little girl.

She had been playing a game when Robin had heard the tell-tale beeping. He'd recognized it for what it was and ran to shield her from the blast. He almost hadn't made it.

The explosion had pushed him forwards and he had curled himself around the little girl in the hopes that his body would protect hers. They'd been thrown into the games, pain exploded in his back, and then everything faded.

He could feel that pain now, and it tore him in half every time he breathed, ripping into the area near his hip. It immobilized him and nearly brought him to tears. Hands on his back did nothing to help with the pain, instead bringing it to horrible heights.

Then the hands moved him.

The pain exploded like a white-hot forest fire, eating any sanity that hadn't yet been consumed by panic. It raced through his torso and out to his limbs, making his fingertips tingle in sharp stabs.

This time he was able to find his voice, and he used it. The scream that escaped his throat surprised even himself, though he had known that it was coming. Instantly the hands moving him froze, and through the ringing in his skull he could hear worried voices.

"M'g-! "Loo-… back. I ca-...blood."

"-T happe-?"

"There's a pole...stab-... his back."

"Super-!... news?"

Frantically he tried to open his eyes, but was deterred by their sheer weight. After a long struggle and more prattling from the worried voices, his tired lids finally opened, only to fall back shut with a grimace. Kid Flash noticed his discomfort and alerted the rest of the team.

"Guys! He's awake."

Immediately silence fell over the rest of the group and he opened his eyes again, taking in his surroundings. Standing at his head was Aqualad, and at his legs crouched Kid Flash. Miss Martian kneeled next to him and her hands rested lightly on his back. Superboy was nowhere to be found.

Robin looked to the young speedster between his legs and blinked, staving off the perpetual darkness that threatened to engulf him once more.

"K-k-kid," a spasm of pain shot through him and he stiffened. Seeing how the faces surrounding him paled drastically, Robin grinned as cheekily as he could and drawled, "I'm p-pretty sure I'm gonna need med- medical attention."

His best friend looked tortured, and his usually bright eyes were dull, despite the try for levity. "Rob, this building wasn't the only one bombed. According to Supey, the bottom floor of the nearest hospital was burnt to a crisp, and the garage for the ambulances exploded. Whoever did this didn't want people to live after this. We can't even get through the door without busting it open, and the building's weakened structure may not withstand that. There are no medical supplies, and no place we can take you to help you. We're going to have to wait this one out."

Robin forced his exhausted eyes to Kid Flash's goggled ones one last time. It took him a moment to focus, and Kid Flash waited patiently. "Take me t-to the Batc-cave."

His friend's face pinched, "Are you sure that's what you want?"

Aqualad chimed in from his position at Robin's head, "Your only other option is to await the arrival of the Justice League. Superboy called them a few moments ago. It could be a while. I do not know if we have that long."

Robin took a steadying breath before nodding his assent, wincing when the movement set his stomach in flames. "You remember h-how to get there, KF?"

The speedster bit his lip. "I'm not sure where the closest entrance is, and it's not like we can just waltz through the front door." He paused a moment, looking thoughtful. "Do you have your cell on you?"

Robin wasted no energy on nodding, choosing instead to weakly fish the electronic device from his hip pocket. A red gauntlet gently took over the task and located the phone before thumbing through Robin's contacts. Apparently satisfied, Wally smiled reassuringly at the ebony haired boy beside him before pressing the cell phone to his ear.

"Alfred? No, it's Wally."

It was as though a heavy weight had been lifted off of Robin's heart. Alfred would be waiting for them, as he always was, and Alfred was as good as any doctor. Maybe he would even call Leslie.

Robin barely heard a foggy-sounding Aqualad ask if it was okay that Kid Flash took backup. The thirteen-year-old mumbled something that should have been an affirmative, and fell back to sleep's waiting arms gratefully, secure in the knowledge that his team and his family would take care of him.

Even if his dad _did _kill him afterward.

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So. I know it's a bit different than it was originally, but there were some plot holes that I hadn't accounted for back when I was young and inexperienced.

They're gone now.

Thanks for putting up with my sloth imitation,

-Magic


	3. To Calm the Masses

So it was mentioned in a comment that Young Justice was far superior to Teen Titans. So I watched Teen Titans for the first time in like, three years.

Kikino, you were correct. Teen Titans was definitely not as epic as I remember.

But their theme song is... catchy.

And I just can't get over the whole 'Raven' thing. I mean, she's an awesome character. Totally amazing.

IT'S A SHAME THAT I DON'T OWN ANY OF IT. NOT EVEN WHAT I'M CURRENTLY WRITING ABOUT. .

Moving on.

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Picking locks was harder than he remembered. Kid Flash and Superboy had been trying to open the main doors to the building for longer than they'd liked, but were nowhere close to succeeding. Superboy had looked around and hadn't found any bombs stuck to the exit, but the locks that had been implemented were almost too complicated for the teenage speedster to handle. Briefly, he sat back on his heels, entertaining the idea of just forgetting the door, letting Superboy smash it, and waiting for the Justice League to show up. Sighing, he plunged back into his work, knowing that Superboy would cause more harm than good, and any thoughts of giving up were squashed by the thirteen-year-old lying injured in the arcade.

They had to get Robin out of here _yesterday_.

They would have waited for the League, but Superboy had been in constant correspondence with Red Tornado since the explosion, and help was hours away. Robin wasn't going to be able to last that long. Luckily, he just happened to have a best friend with super speed and directions to the nearest entrance to the Batcave.

If only these locks would give!

Kid Flash tried jimmying the lock again, huffing in frustration when nothing happened. Standing up, he turned to tell Superboy to give it a try, but upon seeing the Kryptonian's situation, decided to calm the masses of civilians down first. Needless to say, the endeavor was a losing battle for the introvert with anger-management problems, and he was being ripped to shreds by the angry mob. Seeing this, Kid Flash quickly zipped to the top of the stairs and, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify his voice, yelled to get everyone's attention.

"HEY!"

Everyone instantly looked to Kid Flash's position, including the irate little granny that had a furious Superboy's collar in her bony hand.

The Flash's protégé looked approvingly to the masses and began speaking, keeping an eye on some of the more volatile-looking civilians, "We are trying to help you get out of here. The least you could do is have some patience and wait quietly for us to open the door. The Justice League is on its way to help, but they won't be here for a while, so you're all going to have to wait." A distraught murmur ran through the crowd and one audacious teen stepped out from the group, addressing the hero on the steps.

"And how do we know that the Superman wannabe didn't cause this?"

Now, Wally thought of himself as a pretty easy-going guy; but despite his laid back disposition, anger raced through his veins and he felt the sudden need to shake the insolent kid until he passed out or got brain damage, whichever one happened first. As it turned out, he didn't even need to do anything; Superboy beat him to it.

The young Kryptonian stomped forward, gripping the kid by his collar and pushing him (gently by Superboy's standards, but the teen was definitely uncomfortable) against the nearest wall. He then proceeded to growl in the boy's face, "You think that _I_did this? One of my friends is injured! If you have the nerve to accuse me of doing this, then you've got more than one screw loose, and I'll be _glad_ to knock a few more out for you!"

As he spoke, his fist retracted dangerously before punching the wall next to the kid's head, an effective way of accentuating the severity of his conviction. The teenage boy shook visibly and Kid Flash took pity on him, calmly pulling Superboy back. As soon as he was sure that he wasn't going to get pummeled, the kid ran back into the crowd, disappearing into a different part of the crowded mall.

Kid Flash shook his head and returned to the door, determined to open the stubborn thing. After trying six more times to open their only way out, Kid Flash and Superboy were both getting frustrated, and the latter of the two quickly snatched the pick out of the speedster's hand, shoving it into the lock and turning viciously.

The two boys stood stock still as the sound of shifting tumblers filled their ears and the locks came undone. Superboy looked in disbelief at his hand, which still held onto the pick, before turning to the incredulous stare of Kid Flash.

"Really, Superboy? Did you not think of coming out of the lock-picking closet earlier?"

The embarrassed boy shrugged, "I didn't think it would work. I've never done that before."

They were pulled out of their disbelief by the pressing mob of people, determined to get out of the smoky building. The two heroes let them go, having a rather important matter on their minds. They made their way anxiously to the arcade to help Miss Martian and Aqualad move Robin, arriving to see the telepath lifting Robin before her, halfway out the door. The hacker's lower torso was bandaged up tight, but the end of the pipe that had cut through his flesh was still showing out of his back.

Seeing the speedster's curious gaze, Aqualad explained, "I cut it. High pressured water can slice through even the strongest metal."

Kid Flash nodded and took his place at Robin's side. The small group then made their way to the exit, mindful of their youngest's injuries. About halfway to the door Miss Martian stopped, a look of abject horror sketched onto her features.

"Who's going to tell Batman?"

Kid Flash's eyes widened, and he almost slapped himself in the forehead. Batman was coming to the mall as they spoke. He, Superman, and the Green Lantern had been the members of the Justice League that had answered their distress call. What was he going to think when he got there and half of Young Justice, more specifically Robin, was gone?

Wally was just glad that he was the only one who knew where the cave was, and as such, needed to be with Robin. Superboy, acting as Robin's bodyguard, would need to tag along as well. Neither looked forward to an angry Batman.

To no one's surprise, Aqualad took up the job. "It is my responsibility as leader," he said, "Miss Martian will stay with me and help clean up. I will inform Batman."

Kid Flash nodded sharply, quickly, while Superboy plucked Robin from Miss Martian's telepathic hold. As they turned to leave, Kaldur called to them from behind.

"Be careful, and good luck, my friends."

They'd need it.

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And so much for chapter three. If I'm doing something wrong, please feel free to tell me. Just no yelling, okay?

-Magic


	4. Meet the Batbutler!

I am so. Sorry. My computer decided to die a terrible death involving a power surge and a falling from a car window at high speeds. I recently got the new one, and I just now finished this. But it is, in fact, done. Happy obscure holiday, everyone! Enjoy.

I own nahthing dahling.

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The Batjet landed in the mall parking lot, a fair distance away from the burning, crumpling mess. The Dark Knight, slightly irritated at having been called at all, pulled himself lithely out of the cockpit, landing on the concrete not a second before Superman did.

His best friend (though he was loathe to admit it at times) had opted to take the mall with him, in the hopes that the sight of such a trusted icon would ease the public's fears. _Bruce_ hoped that it would force the big blue boy scout and his clone together. Of course, had Clark known that the teenage Kryptonian was, in fact, in the mall, he would never had come.

Which is exactly why Batman hadn't told him.

So Bruce was understandably confused when Superboy wasn't standing at his customary spot beside Miss Martian. He quickly took stock of the situation, and studiously ignored Clark's not-very-subtle sigh of relief at his clone's failure to appear. Young Justice had pretty much kept a hold on the situation, and Miss Martian and Aqualad were both standing at the entrance, letting a stream of fairly calm citizens out the double doors. The others, he could only assume, were still inside, taking care of things in other parts of the mall. His heart swelled minutely in pride; Young Justice hadn't even been on duty and they'd stepped up to handle the situation. Canary was teaching them well.

None of the people walking down the steps looked injured, which Batman was grateful for. The fewer people injured in this, the better.

At the sight of the two Justice League members, the teenagers in the doorway immediately deferred to them, moving out of the way and granting them entry. They both seemed nervous, but it was understandable. They were a covert team, after all, and this could have been extremely detrimental to their operation.

He didn't get suspicious until, after Superman had awkwardly congratulated them on their successful evacuation, the nervous habits of the teenagers only _increased_. They fiddled with their uniforms, and shuffled their feet, and refused to look anywhere near his eyes. Even Aqualad, who was naturally a very submissive person in the face of superiors, could look him in the eye on a good day, and the team wasn't even under fire.

Something was going on, and the detective in him burned to find out just what it was. One look at the Man of Steel told him that Clark was just as curious about their strange behavior.

"Aqualad."

The aquatic teen jumped at the mention of his name and his eyes darted up to meet Superman's. "Yes, sir?"

The smile he received was disarming, "Sorry for being so blunt, but why are we here? It would appear that you guys have everything under control, and the police-" He tipped his ear toward the parking lot, "have just arrived. There's really no reason for our presence."

Aquaman's apprentice blanched, and he opened his mouth to speak, but no words escaped him. Closing his mouth, he looked away from us and tried again, garnering a little more success. "I mean no offence, Superman, but you are correct. There is no reason for you to be here."

Clark looked surprised at the open admission, and I narrowed my eyes.

"We do, however," the Atlantean continued, "have a message for Batman." At this, he finally looked at the Dark Knight, and his pained gray eyes made his jaw clench in trepidation. Worst-case scenarios filled with mass homicidal maniacs with news for the Bat flitted throughout his brain.

At Batman's glare and lifted eyebrow, Miss Martian and Aqualad shared a glance. Bruce realized that they were probably having a mental conversation, but in the back of his mind it occurred to him that they could very well have been playing 'Rock, Paper, Scissors,' and the effect would have been the same. Apparently, either Aqualad lost their little contest or listened to his innate sense of duty, because he turned to the man before him and steeled himself.

"Robin has been injured," He reported, with all of the steely grit of a soldier. "Impaled. He, Superboy, and Kid Flash are on their way to the Batcave at Robin's instruction. They may already be there."

The seventeen-year-old seemed to loose his momentum after the report and glanced at his teammate, who put a green hand on his shoulder and looked the protector of Gotham dead in the eye.

"We did all we could, but... the wound was bad. I don't know how well he'll recover... if he does at all."

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"Acknowledged: Robin, B-01; Kid Flash, B-03; Superboy, B-05.

Superboy tightened his grip on the dark haired boy in his arms as they crossed the threshold into the Dark Knight's domain. Bats fluttered overhead in the darkness; white noise for a human, but mild torture to the Kryptonian clone.

"Master Wally."

Both Superboy and Kid Flash's eyes darted up to the owner of the dapper British accent. An older man dressed in a suit was making his way rapidly down the stairs, his steps measured and controlled. Superboy took a protective step back with wide eyes, but Wally's face split into a relieved grin.

"Alfred!"

The stalwart old man's lips quirked upwards in the shadow of a smile as he continued down the stairs. Superboy tilted his chin up in distrust, but Kid Flash quickly began introductions.

"Superboy," the speedster began, "Meet the Batbutler."

Superboy's tone was skeptical. "That's not really your name." He opened his mouth to speak again, paused, and when he next spoke, he sounded unsure. "Is it?"

The 'Batbutler' laughed quietly. "No, you may call me Alfred. Though it is no surprise that you were uncertain. Master Batman does have a bit of a liking for that particular prefix, doesn't he? Now," Alfred's steps were crisp and precise as he neared the clone, "Let me take a look at Master Robin's wound."

Connor reluctantly uncurled himself around the Boy Wonder, and Alfred's eyes widened. Not wasting any more time than had already been lost, he briskly walked to what Connor could only assume was the infirmary. Opening the door, he directed Superboy to deposit Robin on a bed before turning around to a telephone that hung on the wall. As the man's weathered fingers began to punch numbers, his mouth started releasing questions.

"Does Master Batman know?"

Conner noted with an odd curiosity that Kid Flash's nose crinkled when he got nervous.

"Not... exactly."

The old man whirled towards them, his eyes wide, "What do you _mean_ not exactly? He has not been notified?"

"He'll know as soon as he gets to Gotham. Aqualad will tell him."

Alfred's thin lips quirked into a frown, but he sighed and shrugged his shoulders at Superboy's explanation, "I guess it can't be he- Ah, Leslie? We have a bit of a problem here."

Leslie? Who was that? And why was she the first person that Alfred had called?

"... Well, it would appear that the young master has impaled himself... The metal rod is only about an inch and a half in diameter... Yes, I'll wait for you. Thank you."

The wizened old man hung up the phone and crossed the room to Robin's side, feeling his wrist for a pulse. He timed the soft beats on his watch in silence, before turning to the teens standing awkwardly in the middle of the room.

"Well if you're going to be here, you might as well be helpful. Dr. Thompkins will be here shortly, and she asked us to make Robin as comfortable as possible until she arrives."

He turned to Superboy and directed, "You'll find a morphine drip in the closet in the back of the room adjacent to this one. Fetch one for me, please."

Facing Kid Flash, he said, "And you, young man, will explain to me just how this happened."

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Batman studiously ignored the panicked look in Aqualad's eyes as they sped through the trees in the Batjet. One dark, long-fingered hand latched onto the control panel in front of him, and the other lay splayed against the window, bracing the Atlantean in his seat. With a pang, Batman realized that Robin would have been drinking this kind of speed up, his eyes full of excitement as they rocketed through the woods. He'd only ever gone this fast twice.

And now Batman was worried that he would never have the chance to do it again.

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Oh and by the way, I just wanna send a shout out to JJ100051, who gave me a seriously needed kick in the pants. And I also wanna thank all of you for actually continuing to deal with my failure to do anything.

Love you guys,

Magic.


	5. Exaggerated Footsteps

Alright! New chapter, coming up! I still don't own Young Justice, but I'm working on that.

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There was no way around it.

They were going to crash.

Kaldur had always prided himself on his level-headed nature and calm demeanor, but when the Batwing narrowly avoided yet another tree, he had no choice but to panic. The Atlantean's arms trembled as he stabilized himself inside the cockpit, and his fingers convulsively gripped whatever they could.

There was a part of him that wondered how Batman, between concern for his partner and the extreme speeds he was piloting his aircraft at, could possibly be as calm as he seemed. There was nothing in his posture that belied any stress he felt, but a tic had begun jumping on the right side of his jaw where his teeth were undoubtedly clenched. Still waters, as any ocean-dweller would know, run deep; but to see the phrase personified in the older hero was a novel experience.

Aqualad could only wonder what his teammate was experiencing behind him. With only one extra seat in the Batwing, usually reserved for Robin, Miss Martian had opted to fly with Superman. Being used to the sensation of self-generated flight, the young Martian had been sure that she would be fine.

Aqualad was fairly certain that she had never flown quite this quickly before. On that note, he wasn't even sure if she and Superman were even still behind the plane.

He wasn't feeling brave enough to turn in his seat and check.

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Mouth pressed into a grim line, Batman maneuvered his plane through a dense copse of trees, nearly giving Aqualad a heart attack.

They were so close.

Seeing the waterfall entrance to the Batcave just ahead, the Caped Crusader quickly slammed his hand onto the button that would part the boulders just behind the downpour. Beside him Aqualad had spotted the water, as well as the rock behind it.

"... Batman?"

The rocks weren't opening up fast enough for his liking.

"Batman?!"

Eyes narrowing, Batman threw the plane into a spin as it hurtled into the darkness.

"Batman!"

Entirely vertical, the Batwing barely scraped its way into the cave. As it was, Batman would have to do some minor repair work the the belly and the top of the plane, where the rock had torn into its protective outer layer. As the plane began its short descent into the cave's hangar, the Dark Knight hazarded a glance at his protege's teammate. The Atlantean's eyes were squeezed firmly shut, and he had curled himself into as small a ball as his environment allowed. He didn't dare move until the plane had landed and was powering down.

Waiting for them when they exited the plane were Clark and Miss Martian; the former looking concerned, and the latter looking frazzled and disheveled. He brushed past them both and entered the cave proper.

Astonished gasps ghosted over his ears as his ward's friends caught sight of the cavernous room and all of its splendors, but he payed no attention. His only thought was of Robin. As silent as the shadows he frequented, Batman slipped into the infirmary and stopped cold.

Laying on the examination table was his tiny, dark-haired ward, an oxygen mask pressed his pale face and an IV drip in his right arm. Standing over his prone body were the forms of Alfred and Leslie, each trying their hardest to keep the little acrobat alive. Standing at the monitors was Superboy, looking for all the world like he had done this a thousand times, and zipping around and occasionally out of the room was Kid Flash, fetching things for the doctor as she asked.

The first to notice his presence was, unsurprisingly, Alfred.

Without glancing up, the wizened old butler addressed his charge with a murmured, "Master Batman. We could use your help. Is Master Superman here as well?"

At the Batman's growl in the affirmative, Alfred continued in that same stoic tone, "Good. We need to check for any internal bleeding. His powers will be of great help."

Batman hesitated, unsettled by the idea of leaving his son now that he was there, but without prompting, Alfred solved that problem as well. Without raising his voice out of that calm cadence, he called out to Kid Flash, asking that the young speedster fetch Bruce's Kryptonian friend.

A bodiless "Sure thing!" echoed around the lead-lined room and the Flash's nephew was gone.

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Every quick step the speedster made echoed through the cave in an exaggeratedly long cacophony of noise, and Wally couldn't help but draw the parallels between the noise and his current situation. Ever since Superboy had gingerly placed Robin on the examination table, every moment that Wally experienced felt stretched to an eternity. Every second felt like ages with the pain in Wally's heart prolonging his attachment to the speed force.

There had even been a few times when he'd had to ask people to repeat themselves; listening in extreme slow motion was hard.

Red boots skidded to a stop in front of the huge screens that loomed in the heart of the cave. Standing before him were two of his teammates and Superman, their eyes intent on the screen before them.

A young reporter stood at the smoking rubble of the bombed hospital, a parade of evacuees filing out of the doors behind her. Wally sent the Man of Steel into the infirmary, then forced his brain to calm and slow just in time to hear the tail end of her report.

"-are still looking for the culprit of this terrible crime, and members of the Justice League are reported to have been at each bomb site. So far there have been a surprisingly low number of reported injuries caused by the bombs at the mall and the garage, but the number of people who were killed or hurt by the bomb at the hospital just keeps rising. Police are hopeful that information regarding the culprit will recovered soon. Back to you, Judy."

The scene cut to a middle aged woman in a suit, sitting behind a desk at a studio, and Wally turned on his heel and took off, anxious to be near his best friend once more.

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The first thing Clark noticed when he entered the medical bay was _the clone. _There was no way that he had missed his genetic donor's entrance, but he stayed facing the opposite direction.

The second thing he noticed was the frightening pallor of Robin's face beneath the oxygen mask. The thirteen year old's stomach was packed with clean gauze to staunch the flow of blood from around the metal protruding from his stomach, and his mentor was the one applying pressure. Batman looked absolutely haggard, and Clark knew that the only way to lift the haunted look from his friend's face was the complete recovery of his son.

Silently, he prayed.

As he was prompted to check for any other injuries, he prayed.

He begged for the life of his pseudo-nephew even as he stood ready to help Alfred and Dr. Tompkins remove the offending piece of blood-covered metal from the tiny body before them.

When Dick began to code as his stomach was being stitched, even as Superman held his best friend back and listened frantically for a heartbeat...

Even when that heartbeat finally met his ears and Bruce nearly collapsed in his arms with relief, Clark never stopped praying.

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I decided to stop here for one reason; the word count for the words that actually make up the story is 1234. That was too good to pass up. So here it is. Enjoy. Review, and all that.

-Magic.


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